Tranquility

The train strike meant some creativity was called for to to get to an FA Cup game at Silsden, but also an opportunity to walk a stretch of the canal that I hadn’t been along before.

A couple of buses got me to East Riddlesden where I decamped and headed up to the towpath of the Leeds-Liverpool Canal, from where it was about a four mile walk along to Silsden. The path was busy with cyclists but not so much with walkers. There were a few boats on the move and a couple of kayaking pairs.

I spotted this outcrop about halfway along. Apparently it’s known as turtle rock, but I saw a whale - in particular a Beluga. Other wildlife included a Mute Swan family, quite a few Grey Heron and Speckled Wood, Large White and Red Admiral butterflies.

At the football Silsden were hosting Lancastrians Charnock Richard in the preliminary round of the FA Cup. A very early goal for Charnock unsettled the hosts, but they found an equaliser mid way through the second half. The visitors soon regained the lead though, and with Silsden then having a player sent off there was a cascade of goals. It finished 1-5, which wasn’t really a reflection on the game as a whole.